Wakko: Yes – this chapter is the longest ever.
Pearlyblue: Yeah. We wanted some action in this chapter, so we decided to merge what was originally planned to be two chapters.
Wakko: *Devilish grin* We merged two… to get more action… and we all like it when it lasts for a while, right?
Ladybug: *Completely clueless* Yup! And it almost got EVEN longer!
Wakko: *Dreamy sigh*
Pearlyblue: *Sweatdrops* Riight… well, this is all you're gonna get for this time – but it's a LOT, so don't be disappointed. Or we'll give Ladybug a load of sugar and point her in your direction.
Ladybug: OOOOH!! Ladybug LIKES sugar!! Sugar now?
Pearlyblue and Wakko: NO. At least not yet… remember what happened last time?
Ladybug: Ummm… *Very fake innocence* Noo…
Wakko: The poor woman almost drowned in the sparkles…
Pearlyblue: *Shudders* Yes… horrible…
Ladybug: *Pouts* …But Ladybug WANTS sugar… *Sulks*
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Judeau kicked off his boots and sat down on his bed, feeling heavier than usual from all the good food, and the fatigue of keeping up with Sylvia. He pondered just toppling over and falling asleep fully dressed – it had been such a long, weird day, and he was so tired…
"Judeau?"
"Hnn?" He looked up just in time to see Sylvia dash in through the opening of his tent. She stopped, hesitating, and he saw the glimmer of tears on her alabaster cheeks in the light from his single candle. His heart skipped a beat. "Wha- What?"
Sylvia gave a long, trembling sob and fell forwards, into his arms. Before he knew it, she had wrapped both hands around his shoulders and was weeping uncontrollably against his chest. Judeau's heartbeats sped up alarmingly, but he put both arms around her and stroked her back comfortingly.
"What's wrong, Sylvia? What's happened?" He tried taking a deep breath to compose himself, and continued in a much softer voice: "Come on, Sylvia, tell me. What's wrong?"
She hiccuped and sobbed, but finally managed to speak:
"Co- Corkus… I… he… I don't understand…"
Corkus, Judeau thought. Go figure. I had a feeling there would be trouble about that.
"What did he do to you?" he asked darkly. Sylvia looked up into his face and shook her head slightly.
"No, no…" she whispered weakly, two more sparkling tears spilling from her beautiful, odd-coloured eyes. "He didn't… it was me. My own fault."
Judeau tore his attention away from her soft, rosy lips (what was this strange effect Sylvia was having on him? He knew enough to be sure that it wasn't love – but it seemed like something more than just sexual attraction, too…) and focused on her words with a worried frown.
"Your fault…? Sylvia, what… what did you do, then?"
She whimpered and buried her face against his chest again. Judeau found himself slipping away once more, unwelcome thoughts of pressing his lips against Sylvia's, or of kissing away her tears, began flashing through his head.
What is this…?
Then, clear as the sun itself, an image of Caska appeared before his eyes. Standing proud, smiling that rare little smile that made her dark eyes glow with inner warmth, the wind lightly ruffling her short hair and the sun lending her brown skin a beautiful copper glow…
…And suddenly, his head was perfectly clear again. His friend Sylvia needed his help – or at least his shoulder – and that was all.
He pulled her closer until she was sitting more comfortably in his lap, leaning her head against his shoulder. Calmingly rubbing her back, he smiled encouragingly.
"It's okay, Sylvia. Take your time. When you're ready, tell me what happened, and maybe there'll be something I can do to help. Okay?"
She nodded, still sobbing, and sat up a little straighter. Wiping the tears away with one small hand, she quietly began to speak:
"I just wanted to get to know him a little better, so I brought him some food… 'Cause, you know, he hadn't eaten much… but he was very busy… and… and I… I pestered him. He- he got angry and told me to go… and that he wasn't interested in me at all…" She gave him a very worried look. "Judeau, am I really that horrible?"
Judeau just stared at her in confusion. "Hold on," he said, "Let me get this straight… you went to his tent, with food – your food – and the intention to… hang out with him?"
"Yeah…" she sniffled, "I wanted to get to know him better, to talk to him a little…"
"And he… he actually said that he was busy? With what?"
"Well, he was reading some very important-looking papers."
"He was busy with paperwork? Corkus?"
Sylvia frowned at him. "Yeah."
"Our Corkus? Corkus of the Band of the Hawk?"
"How… many others are there…?"
"And he told you that he wasn't interested in you?"
Tears began pooling in Sylvia's eyes again. "M-hm," she whimpered in a small voice. Judeau still couldn't quite fit his mind around this.
"Corkus?"
Sylvia finally frowned at him and scooted off of his lap and onto the bed, sitting next to him, instead.
"Yes! Why do you keep asking that? It was the same man you pointed out for me at dinner, and called 'Corkus'! It was him!"
Judeau leaned back, thoughtfully stroking his chin. "Huh. It's just that… that doesn't sound like Corkus at all…"
"Well, it was him." She resolutely crossed her arms over her chest and sobbed quietly. "And he told me I was just in the way. I mean, I know I'm not attractive or anything, but I…"
"Now hold on just a minute, Sylvia," Judeau interrupted. "Where have you gotten that stupid idea from?"
"What?"
"That you're not attractive? I mean… I can name… say… about five thousand guys who would disagree."
She sniffled again, but her sadness was slowly evaporating, being replaced by a confused curiousness instead. "Re- really? Are you just saying that to be nice or…?"
He shook his head vigorously. "Oh, no. Absolutely not. Why do you even think that I would?"
Sylvia looked away, embarrassedly studying her feet. "Well… where I come from, y'know, the demon realm, people think I'm very unattractive. I look too weak – no scales, no big muscles, no claws or fangs or wings or tentacles… not even a tail or an extra pair of eyes. Nothing." She sniffled again and mumbled, "I'm a bad catch."
"Really?" Judeau drawled. He couldn't help but grin, even if it really wasn't that funny. "Well, in this world… we humans have quite a different view on beauty, let me tell you. For one, you're considered more attractive the less fangs, scales, claws… weird hairiness… tails or tentacles you've got. Soft skin is very attractive."
Sylvia was looking more and more interested, and she absently reached up to touch her own soft cheek. Judeau's grin widened.
"Two eyes are preferred, too – the perfect number. And long eyelashes goes very well with that."
"Oh, like yours?"
Judeau laughed. "Yeah, sure – or like yours. Let's see, what else… Long legs are attractive… so is a narrow waist, and wide hips… and, er… a full bosom."
Sylvia looked down on herself and nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, big breasts are attractive in my world, too… especially if you have, like, four or five… or six…"
Judeau's eyes widened at the unpleasant mental images. "Okay," he said quickly, "but I guarantee you that humans prefer two. Two eyes, two brea… two ears, two legs, two arms… and one nose, one mouth, one bellybutton. In short, humans want someone who looks like another human. Again, like you."
Sylvia tilted her head to the side and smiled. "Yeah, I've always been attracted to people who look like other humans, too… but what's a 'bellybutton'?"
Judeau frowned. "A bellybutton. You know, on the stomach…"
She shook her head slowly. Perplexed, Judeau lifted his tunic an inch and pointed.
"You know, this one."
"That's right!" Sylvia cheerfully exclaimed. "Papa had one too! Do all humans have these? They're so cute…" She reached out and poked Judeau's bellybutton before he could react, and he quickly pulled his shirt back down again, laughing.
"Heyy…"
Sylvia raised one delicate eyebrow at him and grinned suddenly. "Are you ticklish, Judeau?"
"No," he said, just a little bit too fast. "Er, anyway, don't you have one?"
She shook her head and pulled up her tunic, exposing smooth, uninterrupted skin. "Nuh-uh. Why?"
"So… how were you born, then?"
"Mother laid an egg, why?"
Judeau boggled. "Egg?"
Sylvia nodded. "Yep, mother said she absolutely refused to have any kids growing inside of her. Especially since that unfortunate incident with the parasite-demon… but let's not talk about that – it's kind of icky…"
"Yeah… let's not."
"So…" Sylvia mumbled thoughtfully after a short silence, "If I'm not unattractive, why doesn't Corkus like me?" Before Judeau could answer, she gasped and turned to him in near panic. "He's not… into other men, is he?"
"Nuh-uh. Not Corkus. I honestly can't see why he would…"
"Oh," she gasped again, "What if he's got another girlfriend! God, I bet that's it… he's too gorgeous to be single."
Judeau cringed and almost groaned. 'Corkus' and 'gorgeous' were concepts that he had some problem putting together – but hey, whatever rocked her boat…
"I doubt that… but I guess I could ask him."
"You would?!" Sylvia exclaimed exuberantly. "Oh thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you…"
"I'm not promising anything, though, but I'll see what I can find out."
Sylvia hugged him tightly and squealed, "Thaaaank youuu!" She then leaned back and gave him a radiant grin. "Now I'm more determined than ever to get you together with Caska!"
Judeau turned serious in an instant. "Sylvia, no. Don't. Don't get involved in that, okay? I'm asking you nicely, as a friend."
She frowned in obvious confusion.
"But why? I already am involved… you're my friend and I want to see you happy…"
He got his face back under control and smiled at her. "I am happy. I've got all I need."
Her eyes narrowed, unconvinced. "But… wouldn't you be happier with Caska as your girlfriend?"
Judeau sighed, looking away from her uncomprehending gaze.
"Yeah," he conceded, "Probably. But that won't happen, and…" he looked back at her with another smile. "…I'm okay with that. I've known it for a long time, and I'm okay with it."
Sylvia's eyes were wide open and sincere.
"No you're not," she stated calmly. "You want her. It's plain as day!"
He frowned in slight annoyance. "Okay… I guess I'm not being clear enough, here. See, whether I want Caska or not doesn't really matter…"
"Doesn't matter?!"
"Doesn't matter!" He made sure that his words had sunken in, before he continued: "It doesn't matter, because, as I told you earlier, she doesn't want me. She's hopelessly and helplessly in love with Griffith, and I can't ever change that, no matter how much I would want to." He sighed and rubbed his hands together, looking away from her again. "It's a fact of life: You don't always get what you want. A romance takes two to work, and she's not going to be that part."
"Ooo-kay…" Sylvia drawled thoughtfully. "So… is Griffith in love with her, then? 'Cause I must've missed that…"
"No. No, he's not. Or, he hasn't ever done anything that would make it seem that way, at least. But, you know, that doesn't change a thing for my situation."
"But," Sylvia interrupted, frowning again, "Maybe she just needs to know that she's got another option. Have you even tried to tell her?"
"Er… well… There was a time, when I just started to realise that girls were interesting, and that I was… well… in love with one… When I tried to let her know. Subtly, of course, since she was so obviously hung up on Griffith, even back then."
Sylvia raised one eyebrow. "Subtly, huh? So what did you do, then?"
He sighed again and felt a small, embarrassed smile creep onto his lips as he looked off into his memories.
"Small, silly things… the usual, you know: giving her compliments –which I still kind of do, it's just become a 'thing' between us, nowadays… and helping her out whenever she needed it. You know, just being there for her, in general. Paid attention to her… I even gave her a flower once."
"Once?" Sylvia sounded disappointed and very unimpressed. "You gave her a flower once? Wooow… I can't understand why she didn't get the hint…"
He sent her an annoyed glance. "The problem was: I think she did. She gave me such a weird look, and avoided me for almost a week afterwards. That's when I really realised that it wasn't going to happen."
Sylvia's jaw dropped. "A week?! What, is giving someone a flower another invitation, or what?"
"Er… no. It's a lot more romantic… and I'd put some thought into it, and she picked up on that." The small, embarrassed smile found its way back to his face. "It was a Lily-of-the-valley, since she'd said she loved the way they smelled. And the setting was a little bit romantic, too… by a waterfall – I'd followed her there to help her with her laundry, so it was just the two of us… So stupid."
Sylvia's voice had dropped all of its teasing and hardness:
"No, that's not stupid… that was so sweet."
His lips twitched up in a wry, lopsided smile. "Yep. Too sweet, as it turned out. When you're in a situation like that, and the girl gives you a face like she did to me… well, you sort of have to face the facts. I toned it down after that." Judeau looked up at Sylvia again, and he couldn't keep the smile. "So, you see… if I got that reaction from just giving her a simple flower… imagine if I told her the full truth – or if anybody else did. I'd lose her completely. She's too important to me… Even if I can't have her love, I'll gladly settle for her friendship, as long as it means that she'll stay in my life. Do you understand?"
Sylvia nodded thoughtfully. "You're afraid to risk her friendship. Yes, I see your point."
"I'm glad," he gave her a relieved smile. "You don't gamble with what you can't afford to lose, right?"
"Yup," Sylvia kept nodding, as if she hadn't heard him. "It's a stupid point, but I see where you're coming from. You're afraid, but don't worry…" She gave him a brilliant smile and patted him on the head. "I'll be subtle. I'll be real careful, you'll see. Or rather, you won't see, on account of me being so subtle, that is!" And she winked at him.
While Judeau was still fighting to find the right words, Sylvia got up and briskly walked out of his tent, tossing a cheerful wave over her shoulder. "Don't worry, Judeau! I'll make you happy!"
Panicking, he ran out after her. "Sylvia, wait!" And then stopped cold in his tracks, as he realised that he was suddenly the centre of attention – a group of about ten Hawks were sitting around a campfire, only one tent away from his, and they had all fallen unusually silent. Many of them wore very insinuating grins, and one raised his wineskin in a toast.
"Way to go, Judeau!"
Judeau grinned, fighting a blush. "Eh-heh-heh… heeh… It's not really what it looks like, guys…"
The one who had toasted him winked, and many of the others nodded knowingly amongst themselves.
"Of course it's not. Give us all the details later, okay?"
Judeau threw a desperate glance in the direction Sylvia had disappeared, but she was nowhere to be found. He rubbed his forehead in worried exasperation and turned back to his tent in defeat. He suspected, though, that it would be quite hard to fall asleep now.
* * *
Sylvia walked as unnoticed as a summer breeze through the silenced camp, using her demon abilities to remain unseen. For one, she didn't want Judeau to catch up with her and try to convince her to let him remain miserable, but she had a lot of other things to think about as well, so she didn't want to have to talk to anyone else either.
So, Judeau was going to talk to Corkus and try to find out what it was that she was doing wrong, there… or if he was already taken. Sylvia's eyes narrowed. If she had any chance at all, though… papa always said – and mother sure agreed – 'If you want something, go and get it. Make sure you get it.' That was the way she had been taught, and that was the way she would follow. 'Nobody wants a quitter', 'A weak will can't be compensated by a strong body, but a weak body must be compensated by a strong will'. Yes, she would deal with this.
And then there was another big problem. Her only friend – the only friend she'd ever had that was really worth the name – was hurting. He might be saying that it didn't bother him, but darn it, it bothered her! He had all his reasons and clever words, but the bottom line was that he was hurting, and afraid to get even more hurt. His fear was holding him back, just like papa had always told her to avoid. Well, she'd just have to figure out a way to fix him – starting with… talking to Caska. Yes! Judeau was going to talk to Corkus for her, so she could do the same for him – finding out what Caska thought, for real.
Without saying too much, of course. She'd have to watch it, there.
A small yawn caught her unawares. That's right, she thought dimly, I haven't slept for… how long? Not counting when I was unconscious, of course…
She stopped and stretched, overcome by another yawn. Drat, but it was exhausting to regenerate… and cook… and get your heart broken. Phoo… it had been a busy day, hadn't it?
She sighed and looked around at all the tents, her demonic ears easily picking up the sounds of the sleeping men all around.
Hey, wait… where am I supposed to sleep?
One of her ears perked up, turned, and the other soon followed suit. Somewhere, beyond the quiet murmurs and rustlings of the sleeping soldiers, there was another sound. Stealthy, consciously hushed… a muffled clinking of metal… leaves and grass rustling under heavy, slow-moving feet…
What is that? It sounds like a lot of people… soldiers… sneaking up. Why would anyone be snea-oooh my GAWD!
"Ambush!" she screamed jubilantly at the top of her lungs, hearing men awaken with a yelp all around the camp. She didn't wait for them but started running in the direction the ambushers were coming from. "Ambush! Ambush! This way! This way!"
Other voices were taking up her call, beginning to rally the drowsy Hawks. She ran by a campfire and waved at the men to follow her, which – to her surprise – they did, swords already drawn and at the ready.
She couldn't help but grin giddily. "Ambush! Follow meee!" This was so exciting! Her first REAL battle!
The ambushers finally realised that their cover was blown, and raised war cries of their own as they stormed in, meeting Sylvia and her hastily assembled crew head on.
* * *
Corkus wasn't really sure why he had rushed off after Sylvia like that; it was almost as though her shouted command had gone directly to his feet without passing through his brain – A stronger instinctive reaction than even Griffith could command.
In fact, he had hardly even heard her command in the first place. He'd just been sitting there, minding his wineskin and himself and trying to avoid intrusive questions, and she had swept by like a red-and-gold flurry – and suddenly he found himself on his feet, sword drawn and adrenaline beginning to pump through his veins.
What the hell?
He tried to will his legs to slow down for a brief moment, but then the sound of war cries startled him back into full action. Sylvia's words immediately popped up clear and distinct in his head. Ambush… right.
Well, damn.
A quick look around made his heart and head feel cold with near panic. Sylvia had attracted a few more guys than those around his campfire, but they were still outnumbered – and completely without armour. Their attackers, who were just coming into view, looked vastly better prepared. The outlook was very grim. Corkus hand tightened around the hilt of his sword and he forced himself to focus, to forget the ice-cold fear that was coursing through his body.
He had to fight, even if the outcome was clear. Turning tail at this point would only result in being hunted down and stabbed in the back – meeting the enemy head-on at least gave him a chance to see the blow coming.
And also, there was no way that he could leave Sylvia to die. The bitch was absolutely crazy, and there was no way that she knew what kind of danger she was putting herself in. She even seemed enthusiastic!
Corkus resolve tightened firmly and he sped up, trying to catch up with her before it was too late – but she was too fast.
Two other guys were fast enough, though, and threw themselves in front of her, desperately blocking the first enemy blows. Corkus heard Sylvia scream in frustration:
"Move, please!"
…And then the men staggered aside with surprise, as if forcefully shoved. For one, heart-stopping instant, Corkus saw the enemy horde descend on her. One man, who looked like he'd gotten his face smacked repeatedly with a very heavy frying pan, scarred and grimy, and built like a fucking bear, leered and reached out for her with his free hand. Corkus heard himself scream in rage.
Then, suddenly, everything took a most unexpected turn.
The huge, ugly ambusher was hoisted up into the air, and came crashing down on top of a big group of his own men. Corkus caught a glimpse of crimson and heard the screams of seriously wounded men, and knew that someone must have been impaled on some sharp point, over there. He looked over at Sylvia again in stunned disbelief.
Sylvia was tossing people around like rag dolls, reaching out, pulling them to herself, smacking her forehead into theirs and tossing their dazed, lifeless bodies into their own line. They were wearing helmets, she was not, and yet… she wasn't even fazed.
The helmets were fucking dented! What… the…?
Then a sharp stab of pain shot through his side and he instinctively jumped to the side, turning to face his opponent. Some of the intruders had apparently decided to go around the ring of destruction that was Sylvia, and were coming up on the Hawks from the side. Corkus felt warm blood trickle down his arm, but the pain had faded and was already gone – drowned in adrenaline. His attacker howled in triumph and stabbed again, Corkus parried and met the attack.
* * *
Sylvia whirled through the ambushers, using every trick her father ever taught her. A swift kick at a soft spot here, a grab-twist-pull there, bite, scratch, eye-poke. The human armours yielded like paper even under her low-powered blows, and the guys she had thrown or headbutted remained down. Her demonic blood rumbled in her ears, drowning out any irrelevant sounds, and coursed through her body like liquid fire.
So, this was the rush she had missed out on. She could suddenly understand those demons who became obsessed with this feeling, and why her papa had tried so hard to keep her away from it. The dance of battle could be so very alluring – intoxicating, even – to the wrong half-blood.
Not to her, though. She could hear the song that her blood was whispering, but did not feel it in her heart – could not and would not bend to its wishes. A rush of pure joy, every bit as strong as the battle-rush, poured through her. She was strong! Her mind was strong enough – Strong enough to compensate her weak body!
She laughed out loud, never missing a step or a blow. Papa was going to be so proud! Mother would finally have to acknowledge her strength! Giddy with happiness, she picked up the nearest enemy soldier and pressed a big, wet kiss on his mouth before sending him crashing into his comrades.
There weren't as many enemy soldiers left standing around her, anymore. She spun around, scanning the nearest area with battle-enhanced reflexes.
Where are the biggest and the meanest at…?
She absently brought the back of her fist up, knocking the ambusher who'd rushed up behind her out cold, and then spotted the place where she wanted to go.
As she came up on the fighting horde, she noticed two things: One, the Hawks had been reinforced by better armed and armoured men, Griffith leading them from the front, and two: The huge man who turned around to meet her with menace in his eyes, was the same guy she'd tossed aside at the beginning of the fight. She grinned and stopped for an instant, placing her hands on her ample hips.
"Hiya!" she said cheerfully, "Remember me? I threw you aside, back there…" She tossed her head so that her locks would stay behind her back, and gave the man a wink. "I hope you do better this time! What was the deal with not using your weapon? That was kind of stupid, don't you think?"
He turned several shades more red but didn't bother to reply, instead he lunged at her with his weapon raised in both hands. Sylvia thought she heard a deep, kind of commanding voice cry out her name, but didn't have the time to look around for its source.
* * *
Griffith almost froze for a terrifying instant when he saw Sylvia's radiant figure on the battlefield. She was standing perfectly still, as if completely unaware of the mayhem all around, and it even looked as though she was smiling at the huge brute who was rushing towards her. He cried out her name and spurred his horse on, but the enemy was too thick around him and he wasn't getting anywhere.
As he looked up in desperation, he saw Sylvia and the brute move as if in slow motion. The big man brought his sword down on her with frightening speed and deadly force, but when the blow was supposed to have impacted, Sylvia was no longer there. Somehow, she had gotten in behind him – but she didn't use this opportunity to run for her life, instead she reached out and tapped the man on the shoulder!
The big brute turned around, howling with rage and sweeping his sword around in a mighty arc. This time, Sylvia didn't dodge. Still smiling, she reached out and caught the blade in her open palm. Griffith fully expected to see her fingers fly away in a spray of blood, but instead… the sword stopped in mid-arc.
The brute looked as surprised as Griffith felt, and was clearly putting all his strength behind the blade, but Sylvia's smile merely widened. Then her small, delicate fingers tightened around the sword and bent it with a horrible whine from the tortured metal. The big man merely had time to gasp and begin to back away before Sylvia had tossed his now-useless sword aside and taken one swift step closer to him. Her lips moved as if she whispered something to him, and then her hand shot out with the speed and deadly precision of a cobra, closed around his codpiece, and hoisted him high into the air.
Griffith found himself almost sympathy-cringing. Before the heavy body had hit the ground, though, Sylvia had sped off in another direction and out of Griffith's sight.
So… he thought between parries, blows and commands …is she really a half-demon, then? Or was that some kind of… hallucination?
No. She has to be. It's the only explanation, however strange it may seem.
Huh. Most interesting. Most interesting indeed.
* * *
"Not very impressive," she whispered into the big man's scarred, stunned face, before she grabbed him hard by the balls and threw him away, much more forcefully than last time.
She didn't bother to check where he landed – she was quite confident that he wouldn't get back up, this time – and glanced around for the next good target.
The tiny little hairs at the back of her neck suddenly rose, and a small, cold shiver rippled down her back. She turned her head the way that her instincts pulled it, and her heart almost stopped. In one of the few places left where the ambushers still outnumbered the Hawks, Corkus was fighting for his life. He was bleeding from a nasty cut on the arm and several other small wounds, and she could tell that he was beginning to have some difficulty holding on to his blood-slick sword.
Without even thinking about it she dashed off at top demon speed, to save her man.
* * *
It was over. Practically over already. The fight he was putting up was more pure, stubborn bitchiness than anything else. He knew it was only a matter of time before this asshole got the best of him, but he'd be damned if he wasn't going to leave his mark on him, first.
The blood loss was getting to him, too. He had to concentrate on every little move, because the world was beginning to swim at the edges, making him unsteady. He desperately blinked a drop of his own blood out of his eyes and made a quick jab forward.
His blade actually managed to sneak in between the chest- and the armplate of the man he was fighting, and Corkus felt it penetrate soft flesh.
Yes! Got him!
But his brief triumph made him sloppy, and in the next moment his sword was flung from his hands. Corkus looked into his attacker's eyes and saw no mercy. Only fair, he supposed, watching the axe swoop down on him. He wouldn't have given any, had their places been reversed.
His eyes stung with tears of frustration that would never get the chance to fall.
Fuck. I didn't want to die like this. Not like this.
A small, bright object entered his field of vision, and the moment of the axe's impact against his head dragged out far longer than it should have. He blinked again, and the image cleared: A delicate, decidedly female hand was holding the axe at bay. He didn't have the time to frown in dazed confusion before another small hand shot into view and slammed into the axe-wielder's face. The man toppled over without so much as a grunt, and Corkus found himself swiftly hoisted up into the air – and then down to hang over someone's rather small shoulders.
A scent of flowers somehow managed to penetrate the overwhelming stench of blood and battle, and he caught a glimpse of something golden-red…
…Sylvia?
His befuddled mind tried to make some sense out of this situation. It couldn't be Sylvia. Not here, not like this, carrying him and effectively kicking ass all round – at the same time. Corkus blinked and frowned, absently watching soldier bodies fly away from whomever it was that was holding him. So… did I die? Or… fall asleep or something…?
His frown deepened. No, he was in too much pain to be unconscious in any way. Ah, maybe he was hallucinating. Yes, the blood loss had finally got to his mind. That had to be it.
He closed his eyes and focused on relaxing and trying to make the world stop spinning in every direction at once. After a moment, it seemed like he was succeeding – his stomach lurched, as if the person holding him had made a great jump, and then the world finally stopped. It felt as though small, female hands were slowly helping him back onto solid ground. He opened his eyes and focused – with some effort – on Sylvia's beautiful face.
What??
She smiled, a small, worried little smile, and he felt one of her soft, delicate hands hesitantly touch his face.
"You're safe now, Mr. Corkus. Let me heal you…"
Corkus blinked at her, putting all his effort into making his voice heard:
"You… What…? I mean… what was that? Did you… Did you just save me? How...?"
Sylvia gasped and blushed abruptly. "Oh… eh… ah…" she glanced back over her shoulder, and Corkus followed her gaze to see a large squadron of Hawks, all staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed at Sylvia – and beyond them, the retreating ambushers. Sylvia turned back to him again and fidgeted nervously.
"I… er… I'm sort of… a half-demon, actually." She looked up at him through her bangs and bit her own lower lip with perfect, pearly white teeth. "My mother is a demon Queen in a place very, very far from here. I'm sorry I lied… but Ju… er… I thought you wouldn't believe me."
Corkus mind was trying to tell him something, but it was a terrible mess right now, and Sylvia's beauty – cuteness – sexiness – was very distracting. He blinked again and frowned.
"So you're… not crazy?"
Sylvia twiddled her fingers. "Er… no. Not even demon-like crazy – I can handle the sight and smell of blood and everything…" she trailed off and cleared her throat, shyly looking away. "I mean… er… no, I'm not." Then she took a deep breath and reached out for him, placing one of her dainty hands on his wounded arm. "But please let me heal you now, I can explain more later."
Corkus found a heady grin wringing its way onto his face. She's not crazy… she's not crazy…! She likes me and she's not crazy…!
"I mean…" he tried to form words out of the jumbled mess that was his mind, "That was… back there, you… You were so fucking…" And something abruptly clicked inside his head – a voice of warning forced its way through his confusion, complete with big, tolling warning bells:
Shut up! Shut up, right this instant! Did you hear what she just said? She is still a noble – her mother is a fucking Queen! AND… a demon! Which means that you won't get hanged – only eaten alive! Back off, back off right now, back off!
Corkus changed gears in mid-sentence: "…So fucking unfeminine!" he made a face and tried to pull himself away from Sylvia's hands. "Oh god! Get your fucking hands off of me, you scary bitch!"
Sylvia's face fell, but she kept reaching for him. "No… Mr Corkus, please… you need to be healed!"
He scrambled to his feet and backed several steps away. "Don't touch me! You're disgusting and fucking creepy! I'm going to a real, human doctor, thank you very much!"
He spun around, almost lost his footing, but kept staggering away towards the field-surgeons' tents – stubbornly refusing to look back.
* * *
"It's okay… its not that bad…"
"Shut up." Caska sent Judeau a stern glance and yanked his arm even further around her neck. "If it's not that serious, then why are you hanging so heavily on me?"
He gave her an innocent smile, which was only slightly marred by a grimace of pain. "Um… 'Cause I like having my arm around a beautiful woman?"
She gave him a half amused, half weary look. "Yeah, okay. It can't be all that bad if you're still able to crack jokes. You're still limping badly, though, so I'm not going to let go."
"Who's joking?" he chuckled, then choked on a moan of pain. "Ow, damnit, I'm not gonna be able to sit down for weeks…"
"What's going on over there?"
Judeau looked up and over at where Caska had turned her attention, and saw Corkus very unsteadily stagger away towards the surgeons' tent – the direction that he and Caska were heading – and noticed a bunch of Hawks who were all staring after him. No… most of the guys weren't staring after Corkus, Judeau noticed at closer inspection, but at the figure half-sitting on the ground a little ways away. A certain, slumped, golden-red haired figure.
"Sylvia…" he gasped. Caska glanced over at him in annoyance, but he gave her a pleading look back and pointed in the direction of the fair-skinned woman. "Come on, Caska, we have to see if she's okay…"
Caska made a faint huffing sound and jerked unnecessarily hard on his arm as she turned. Judeau grunted, but mostly out of surprise – he'd forgotten how much Caska disliked Sylvia.
As they walked over to the crestfallen woman, he heard Caska mutter under her breath:
"Shouldn't she have been hiding under a table somewhere… I bet she's just fainted at the sight of the blood… Can't even believe she's this close to where the action was…"
Judeau decided to pretend that he hadn't heard any of that, and instead reached out for Sylvia as they came up on her.
"Hey… Sylvia, are you okay?"
Sylvia pulled in a quick and ragged breath, sniffling and wiping her face frantically before turning around to face them.
"Yeah, I'm fine." She smiled radiantly at him with red, puffy eyes and traces of tears still on her face - The result of which was absolutely heartbreaking. Judeau slipped down off of Caska's shoulder, carefully compensating for his injured… leg, and gently placed his hands on her shoulders.
"No, you're not. Was it… Corkus?"
Sylvia pulled in another sharp, ragged breath and her face screwed up as she fell into his arms, beginning to weep. Caska made a short, angry huff behind his back and abruptly turned away.
"I guess you won't be needing me anymore," she snorted and stomped off. Judeau felt torn for just an instant, but Sylvia really needed him right now.
I'll apologise later… or something, he thought to himself with a small sigh.
Sylvia looked up, sobbing, and frowned at the departing woman. Then she looked up at Judeau with worried confusion.
"Did I do something wrong?"
He shook his head and gave her a strained smile. "No, don't worry about it. So, what happened this time?"
She began drying the tears away again, sniffing silently. Then she suddenly frowned and sniffed more intently at the air, leaning closer to Judeau. He leaned away a little in confusion, and Sylvia grabbed him firmly by the arms. She sternly looked up into his face.
"I can smell your blood. Are you hurt?"
"Er… yeah… but it's nothing serious."
Sylvia frowned deeper and leaned even closer to him, sniffing all the while. "You're lying!" She gave him a brief, admonishing glance and begun sniffing her way down his side. "You should never lie about woun… Whoa! Your butt is soaked in blood!"
Startled, Judeau tried to look behind himself, writhing slightly in Sylvia's hard grip.
"Is it?! Damn, I didn't think it was that bad… Will you help me get to the surgeons?"
"No, no…" Sylvia released him and decisively clapped her hands together. "It'll go a lot faster if I just do it right here."
Judeau fell back against the ground, landing on his uninjured side. He looked up at her with some alarm. "Do what?"
"Heal you, silly. Now turn over properly, and take off your pants."
Judeau tried to scoot backwards. "Sylvia, no…! That's really not appropriate!"
Sylvia scowled at him and grabbed onto his pant legs, beginning to tug. "Ohhh, don't be so difficult, Judeau! I'm going to heal you, and to do that I'm going to have to touch your flesh! It won't work through the clothes!"
Judeau heard a faint whoop from the guys standing further back. Panicking slightly, he tried to hold onto his pants and crawl away at the same time. "Sylvia! Please!"
She pulled him back, almost into her own lap, and begun tugging at his belt. "Stop squirming and take it like a man!"
Desperately trying to pry away her hands, Judeau reached for some kind of compromise.
"Can we at least do this in a tent?!"
Sylvia stopped and gave him a small, frustrated sigh. "Fine. I don't see what you're being shy about, though. It's just a silly little healing."
She swiftly stood and swept him up into her arms. Turning around to face the bystanding Hawks, she pointed at the nearest tent. "Can I borrow this one?"
Looking stunned and not so little disappointed, some of them just nodded in silence. Sylvia gave them a bright smile.
"Thank you! Oh, and if anyone else is injured, I'll gladly take care of you too. Just wait outside, okay?"
As she swirled around and trotted over to the tent, Judeau saw the guys eagerly scramble into a line.
Well, at least they weren't pointing and laughing.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ To be continued…
Wakko: *Purrs*…Was that as good for
you as it was for me?
Pearlyblue: *Glares* Don't.
Ladybug: Ladybug's not sure… what
does Wakko mean with "Good for"…?
Pearlyblue: Ignore that.
Wakko: *Sticks tongue out at
Pearlyblue* Spoilsport.
Pearlyblue: Whatever. Let's just get
to the Reviewer Responses.
Ladybug: YAAAAY!!
Pearlyblue: *Sweatdrops* *Turns to
Wakko* She didn't get to the sugar, did she…?
Wakko: I f*cking well hope not… *Sags*
Oh d*mn… WHY CAN I STILL NOT
SWEAR?!
Pearlyblue: *Clears throat loudly*
Anyway… gundamgirl66 *Looks up* Yes, dear: That's the point. This is a parody –
it's just for fun.
Ladybug: OOH! Vitellio! He is so
sparkly! But Ladybug don't always understand what he's talking about… Ladybug
didn't see so much angst in the anime. But quite often, Wakko and Pearlyblue
covered Ladybug's ears and eyes… but they told Ladybug that she didn't miss
much. *Beams* Ladybug liked the bathing scene, though. Griffith
was funny. *Gives Pearlyblue a confused look* What do you mean when you talk
about Guts' future…? Is there another story? Didn't it end in a big, sparkly
hug?
Pearlyblue and Wakko: *Looks
innocent* Er… well… um… *Looks at each other for help*
Wakko: Um… yah, sure it did. Um. The
rest of the story is about… um… Guts
and Caska's… family. Yes! Family!
Ladybug: But why haven't Ladybug
gotten to see that?
Wakko: *Pokes Pearlyblue* Your turn.
Pearlyblue: Ummmmm… Beeecaaauuuse
it's for adults only. Yeah, and a little bit icky. Yeah.
Ladybug: *Wilts* Ohh… And Ladybug
will never be an adult.
Wakko and Pearlyblue: *Exhales and
secretly low-fives each other* Yes, exactly.
Wakko: Thunder Mistress. Our very
faithful reviewer! *Lowers voice and whispers* You know, it's not Ladybug who's
got the insane crush on Judeau… If you're agreeing with that frea… er… the one
who thinks "the Freckled One rules all", then it's Pearl you're talking about.
Personally, I can't see how she can keep to only one guy…
Pearlyblue: *Elbows Wakko in the
side and glares* Shut up, you. *Clears throat* Niclas, as always, it's a
pleasure to see you. Now… you do know there's a story tucked in between the
interludes with us three? We appreciate that you find us so amusing, though –
don't think otherwise. *Beams*
Ladybug: Hee hee, Pearl is sparkly…
*Looks at next review and gasps* Oh! magical-flyingdragon! This one's mine,
mine, mine! *Clears throat, trying to sound just like Pearlyblue* *Beams and
waves* Hiiyyaa!!! You guessed it would be Corky? Cool… you're smarter than
Ladybug! *Thinks again* …But… no, Ladybug did know that before…
Wakko: Yeah. We kind of decided that
together, remember…?
Ladybug: Oh, yeaaaah…
Wakko: *Reads review. Reads again.
Hands it over to Pearlyblue* Oh my god, they're multiplying. And not even in a
fun way.
Pearlyblue: *Blushes and waves* Hi,
Elin1. Ignore Wakko, she just can't see the point of liking only one guy. Or
gal, for that matter… Here's a deal, we'll keep writing this if you keep
writing your Judeau-epic. Okay?
Ladybug: We'd stop writing if she
stops?
Wakko: Like f*ck we are… Aw, man.
Pearlyblue: *Makes quick,
shushing gestures* …Shutupshutupshutupshutupshhhhh… *Hands Wakko the next
review* You do the next now, okay? Now?
Wakko: *Still bummed about the
swearing* Whatever. *Reads review* Um… this one's two… well, either that or
schizo…
Pearlyblue: Don't speak that way
about our kind and lovely reviewers!
Wakko: *Grins at audience* But
they're positive, so we like them. The more the merrier, as I always say. Hee hee...
*Winks*
Ladybug: Merit Somnia – does that
mean tired or something? *Beams* Anyway, thank you for liking how we write
Corkus… and the rest of the stuff.
Pearlyblue: *Steps in* Yes… we would
actually like to ask you, and anyone else who's read this far down the page,
what you would most like to see. Are you rooting for Corkus, or against him?
We're actually incredibly curious about what you people think of this.
Wakko: We're not actually gonna
change the story or anything, though, since we've already thought it all out –
but it's fun to know where our readers stand. Please tell us in your next
review.
Ladybug: Ladybug wants to know too!
Ladybug would per-so-nal-ly like to see Sylvia with Corkus. *Thinks* But Ladybug
would like it, too, if she got together with Judeau. *Thinks again* Or with
Griffith – he needs a hug. Guts too… Maybe Sylvia should be with him… He always
looks so sad…
Pearlyblue: *Gives Ladybug a weary
look* Yeah, anyway… Our final review: Badenalda – It's good to know that you're
reading on, and having fun! Please come again.
Wakko: And everybody please remember
to vote now… I mean… tell us your opinions. 'Cause it's not really a vote.
Pearlyblue: Yeah. Gogogo!
Ladybug: CHEERLEADING! YAAAAYY!
*Whips out yellow, black-spotted pompoms from nowhere* Go! Go! Go!
----
Chibi Pearlyblue: *pops head in while the credits roll by in the background* Special announcement: A very special thanks to Elin1, for showing me how to make the html do what I wanted it to. Good luck with your own! *winks, waves and dissappears again*
